The Mate Games
by DEAD ACCOUNT-102620
Summary: Long after the rein of Bramblestar, a new event arises in the Clans: The Mate Games. Two she-cats and one tom are picked at random from each Clan and two she-cats from different Clans must fight for a tom- to the death. Who will survive and who will perish in this barbaric event? Read to find out! [Rated T for violence and suggestive themes]
1. Allegiances

**ThunderClan:**

 **Leader:**

Stormstar: silver tom with dark blue eyes.

 **Deputy:**

Goldfeather: golden she-cat with blue eyes and one white paw.

 **Medicine Cat:**

Blossomdawn: white she-cat with cinnamon, golden, and ginger patches; amber eyes.

 **Medicine Cat Apprentice:**

Badgerpaw: white tom with a black stripe running down his spine; blue eyes.

 **Warriors:**

Hazelshade: black she-cat with a cream undercoat and hazel eyes.

Creamwhisker: cream tom with amber eyes.

Dapplecloud: white she-cat with dark brown spots and green eyes.

Branchtail: dark brown tom with yellow eyes and white tail tip.

Squirrelstripe: light brown she-cat with a dark brown stripe running down her spine and plumy tail; dark green eyes.

Ivytalon: white she-cat with silver undercoat and dark green eyes.

 _Apprentice: Shadepaw_

Foxspots: russet tom with black spots and amber eyes.

Fallenspirit: ginger tom with dark green eyes and plumy tail.

Fennelwing: white she-cat with russet undercoat and amber eyes.

 _Apprentice: Nightpaw_

 **Apprentices:**

Nightpaw: black she-cat with green eyes.

Shadepaw: black she-cat with blue-green eyes.

 **Queens:**

Leaftail: dark brown she-cat with leaf-green eyes and white tail tip. (Kits are Featherkit and Barkkit, mate is Creamwhisker.)

 **Kits:**

Featherkit: cream she-cat with dark brown spots and green eyes.

Barkkit: dark brown tom with amber eyes and white tail tip.

 **Elders:**

Brindlemoon: light brown she-cat with faint cream streaks and green eyes.

Bonewing: thin, bony, white she-cat with yellow eyes.

Crowflight: bony black tom with yellow eyes.

 **RiverClan:**

 **Leader:**

Bloomstar: calico she-cat with vivid green eyes.

 _Apprentice: Minkpaw_

 **Deputy:**

Blacksplash: white tom with black spots, tail tip, ear tips, paws, and vivid green eyes.

 **Medicine Cat:**

Emberfeather: russet she-cat with black spots and tail tip; vivid green eyes.

 **Medicine Cat Apprentice:**

Maplewing: chocolate tortoiseshell with reddish-amber eyes.

 **Warriors:**

Ashfeather: light grey tom with black patches and dark blue eyes.

Swansong: white she-cat with dark blue eyes.

 _Apprentice: Duskpaw_

Umberlight: russet tom with gold-amber eyes.

 _Apprentice: Streampaw_

Dawnfrost: cream she-cat with light grey patches and green eyes.

Snowstream: white she-cat with silver flecks and dark blue eyes.

Cherrynose: ginger she-cat with dark brown eyes.

Cindermist: dark grey she-cat with green eyes, long fur, and a wispy tail.

 _Apprentice: Vinepaw_

Rippleclaw: blue-grey tom with blue eyes and white spots.

Eaglestrike: white tom with brown undercoat and dark brown eyes.

 _Apprentice: Rushingpaw_

Silverheart: silver she-cat with blue eyes and white chest.

 **Apprentices:**

Rushingpaw: white tom with wispy blue-grey stripes and blue eyes.

Vinepaw: grey-green tom with gold-amber eyes.

Duskpaw: tortoiseshell she-cat with gold-amber eyes.

Minkpaw: grey tom with black splotches and gold-amber eyes.

Streampaw: blue-grey she-cat with white points and blue eyes.

 **Queens:**

Lilyshimmer: white she-cat with cream flecks and green eyes. (Kits are Sunkit, Starkit, and Shadowkit, mate is Ashfeather.)

Honeytuft: golden she-cat with light brown ear and tail tips and blue eyes. (Kits are Hickorykit, Nettlekit, Sorrelkit, Applekit, and Birchkit, mate is Eaglestrike.)

 **Kits:**

Sunkit: white tom with cream patches and green eyes.

Starkit: black she-cat with cream flecks and dark blue eyes.

Shadowkit: black tom with light grey flecks and dark blue eyes.

Hickorykit: brown tom with white undercoat and dark brown eyes.

Nettlekit: light brown she-cat with golden flecks and blue eyes.

Sorrelkit: white she-cat with golden ear tips and dark brown eyes.

Applekit: golden she-cat with brown undercoat and blue eyes.

Birchkit: white tom with light brown flecks and tail tip; dark brown eyes.

 **Elders:**

Twistedtail: chocolate tortoiseshell she-cat with amber eyes and a bent tail.

 **WindClan:**

 **Leader:**

Sandstar: golden tom with amber eyes.

 **Deputy:**

Beechbranch: cream tom with dark brown flecks and amber eyes.

 _Apprentice: Aspenpaw_

 **Medicine Cat:**

Ebonysky: slim, graceful black she-cat with sky blue eyes.

 **Medicine Cat Apprentice:**

Dovesong: white she-cat with amber eyes.

 **Warriors:**

Clovershine: light brown she-cat with silver spots and light green eyes.

Bouncefern: tortoiseshell she-cat with amber eyes.

Shredshadow: black tom with shredded face, nose, and one sky blue eye.

 _Apprentice: Furzepaw_

Willowwish: blue-grey she-cat with honey-colored spots and gold-amber eyes.

Bramblewing: black tom with chocolate brown points and sky blue eyes.

Shrewfur: skinny cream tom with hazel eyes.

Cedarleaf: dark brown tom with reddish-amber eyes and white stripes.

 _Apprentice: Fernpaw_

Morningspots: dark brown she-cat with golden spots and light green eyes.

 _Apprentice: Sootpaw_

Dawntail: golden she-cat with amber eyes and a white tail tip.

 **Apprentices:**

Furzepaw: honey-colored she-cat with gold-amber eyes.

Aspenpaw: blue-grey she-cat with honey-colored flecks and sky blue eyes.

Sootpaw: grey tom with black points and grey eyes.

Fernpaw: grey tabby she-cat with grey-green eyes.

 **Queens:**

Turtlepetal: mouse-grey she-cat with cream patches and bright greenish-hazel eyes. (Kits are Stripekit and Fawnkit, mate is Cedarleaf.)

 **Kits:**

Stripekit: mouse-grey she-cat with dark brown stripes, ear tips, and tail tip; one greenish-hazel and one reddish-amber eye.

Fawnkit: cream she-cat with white stripes and reddish-amber eyes.

 **Elders:**

Cloudpoppy: white she-cat with reddish-amber eyes.

Flowertooth: cream she-cat with greenish-hazel eyes.

 **ShadowClan:**

 **Leader:**

Rowanstar: russet tom with reddish-brown eyes.

 **Deputy:**

Daisyleaf: pinkish-cream she-cat with green eyes.

 **Medicine Cat:**

Silvermask: black she-cat with blue eyes, silver ear tips and silver mask.

 **Medicine Cat Apprentice:**

Kestrelwhisker: dark brown tom with amber eyes.

 **Warriors:**

Pinemoon: cream she-cat with dark brown undercoat and green eyes.

Breezetuft: white tom with light grey dapples and brown eyes.

 _Apprentice: Marshpaw_

Addertooth: grey tom with light brown underbelly and yellow eyes.

Moonfeather: white she-cat with dark grey undercoat and blue eyes.

Heatherfrost: pinkish-cream she-cat with grey eyes and white chest.

Heronmask: grey tom with dark brown mask.

 _Apprentice: Plumpaw_

Roseleap: pinkish-cream she-cat with reddish-amber eyes.

Lizardjaw: cream tom with dark green eyes and unusually sharp teeth.

 **Apprentices:**

Marshpaw: grey-green tom with blue eyes.

Plumpaw: pinkish-grey she-cat with amber eyes.

 **Queens:**

Echostream: blue-grey she-cat with blue eyes. (Kit is Whisperkit, mate is Breezetuft.)

 **Kits:**

Whisperkit: blue-grey tom with white dapples and brown eyes.

 **Elders:**

Hollowears: deaf grey tabby tom.

Shadowlight: black she-cat with wispy golden stripes and green eyes.


	2. Prologue

Many moons after Bramblestar, the great leader of ThunderClan, perished, things changed between the four Clans. There were enormous outrages about the warrior code preventing two cats from different Clans from having kits, and complaints about she-cats not picking a mate in the time they wished to have kits. The leaders gathered together and decided on a new warrior code and a new event: The Mate Games.

Every cat was now to make scratch marks they could distinguish as their own on a leaf when they became a warrior. This way, no kits or apprentices would be forced into the barbaric event. The leaves were separated into a pile of toms' marks and she-cats' marks. Every six moons, each Clan leader chose two leaves from the she-cat pile and one leaf from the tom pile at random. The cats claimed those leaves as their own, and at the next gathering the leaders would share news and then take the selected cats to a secluded plain where they would then be matched.

Two she-cats from different Clans would fight to the death for a tom in a different Clan than both of the she-cats. (Example: RiverClan and ShadowClan fight for ThunderClan.) The winning she-cats were taken with the tom they fought for to a system of caves, where each pair of mates chose a den and got seven moons to give birth to and raise kits. The kits were divided amongst the Clans their parents were from, and if the litter was an odd number the remaining kit was given to the Clan whose she-cat had lost. (Example: RiverClan and ShadowClan fight for ThunderClan. RiverClan wins. RiverClan and ThunderClan have five kits. Two are given to ThunderClan, two to RiverClan, and the remaining one to ShadowClan, who lost their she-cat.)

This made sure that the Clan that lost their she-cat still has growing cats to supply their Clan. After The Mate Games, if they wished, the pair of cats could take their kits in their Clans, though not the compensation kit, and raise them on their own. Once the kits were warriors, they had to go back to the Clans they grew up in as kits and fight and hunt for that Clan as a warrior until the became an elder and went to StarClan.


	3. Selection and Pairing: Hazelshade

**Hazelshade's POV:**

"From WindClan is Bouncefern, Dawntail, and Shrewfur." Sandstar yowled to the cats at the Gathering. Hushed whispers rippled thought the crowd.

"From ShadowClan is Pinemoon, Moonfeather, and Lizardjaw!" Rowanstar announced. Again, more whispers rang through the four Clans.

"From RiverClan is Snowstream, Silverheart, and Rippleclaw!" mewed Bloomstar.

"Last, from ThunderClan is Hazelshade, Dapplecloud, and Branchtail!" Stormstar boomed. I gasped as soon as the words hit my brain. Me? In the Mate Games? But no mistake could be made, and I crumbled inside as I realized I would have to slaughter other she-cats in the brutal event so I could have kits with a tom from some other Clan. Me? In the Mate Games? I had planned carefully for my future, wanted to have two litters of kits with Foxspots, who I was growing ever-so-close to. Me? Why me? Tears streamed down my black cheek.

No! I blinked my tears back. I will be strong and do whatever I have to do to survive this barbaric entertainment so that I can get back to my Clan and raise kits with the handsome russet tom I truly love. Foxspots rose from his usual place at the base of the Fourtrees and padded over to me, worriedly glancing over.

"You all right?" He asked, his warm amber eyes boring into mine.

"No." I replied truthfully, turning away from him.

"Wait, Hazelshade. Come here." he beckoned with his head, and as I walked over to him he rested his muzzle on my head. "Everything's going to be all right, okay? You are tough, and you are going to do the best you can to come back to me or die trying. Right?" I ignored the "die trying" part and nodded, then closed my eyes and sighed.

"You're right, Foxspots. I'm going to do-" I was cut off as a burly black and white patched tom with green eyes shouldered his way through the crowd and yanked on my tail with his teeth. "Ow! What was that for?"

"Finish saying goodbye, sweetheart." He snarled. "We got to get you to the arena." I nodded goodbye to Foxspots, who I may never see again, then padded though the crowd to say goodbye to my dad, Crowflight. I turned around to go with the guard for the arena, and he whacked me over the head with his paw, not hard enough to break skin, but hard enough to leave me unconscious.

While I've passed out, let me tell you something about why I hate the Mate Games in the first place. You know my dad is Crowflight, right? Well my mom is Flowertooth of WindClan, and my brother Shrewfur is in WindClan with her. After the Mate Games, my mother went how I would go and went back to her Clan, made little contact with her son in WindClan, and proceeded to have kits with another tom besides my father and live a fairly normal life. Do you see know why I hate the Mate Games? It forces two cats that don't even like each other to have kits, and usually their kits are taken out of their lives. Luckily, my father cared dearly for me and my mom was substituted by my dad's sister, Bonewing. She was very kind to me and helped raise me well. Oh, I'm becoming conscious. Better get back to real life.

I was dropped on my head on sandy ground. I rubbed my paw against my head to help relieve the pain, then stood up.

"Welcome to the arena." the black and white tom sneered. As my vision became clearer, I started to study my surroundings more. I was surrounded by a mud wall as high as two trees everywhere. Dapplecloud and Branchtail lay next to me, watched over by a brown tabby tom and white tom. Dapplecloud regained consciousness as she stood up, searching around her.

"Hello, Hazelshade." she mewed pleasantly, as if she didn't remember been knocked out by a buff tom.

"Hey, Dapplecloud." I said, nodding my head to acknowledge her.

"Don't get comfortable, because you're going to meet your competitors soon." the brown tabby sniffed.

We were soon faced by our opponents from RiverClan. One was a timid, silver she-cat, looking as if she was going to break down on the scene. Another was a beautiful, silky, long-furred white she-cat whose appearance emanated kindness and grace. The last was a blue-grey tom with broad shoulders and blue eyes that sparkled like fresh-fallen snow. He kneaded his paws nervously and put his head down after getting a close look at all of us ThunderClan cats. The RiverClan cats were lead away by the guards and the ShadowClan cats were herded towards us.

The first, a dark brown and cream she-cat with eyes that glowed like the trees in the forest. Her legs were crusted with mud and she nodded a friendly hello to me. The second, a cream tom with long, sharp, teeth and the same forest-green eyes as the first she-cat. I'm guessing they're siblings. The final ShadowClan cat was a fluffy white and dark grey she-cat with blue eyes who seemed immensely curious in studying our physical features, maybe to see what strategy would work the best.

We were the ones being led away this time, and we came to face the last row of cats: WindClan. One was an excited-looking tortoiseshell with warm amber eyes. The second cat I looked at was a golden she-cat with a white tail tip.

"Hello, I'm Dawntail." she mewed. I widened my eyes in surprise. No one had really talked yet. "Thought you losers might want to know who I am before you get killed by me. I doubt anyone else will win." She rolled her eyes at our team and scoffed, before backing away and pretending to be sweet. The last: a tom I knew, but not quite. His name rang through my head. Shrewfur. My brother. He had the same ruffled cream fur I had on my undercoat, and I searched his dark brown eyes for hints of hazel that lay in the depths of them. I should know him so very well. He's my brother, after all. But I barely know him. The only time we were together and happy was a time we can now barely remember.

"Hazel-h...h...Hazelsha-" he was cut off as the guard stared at him toughly.

"Remember the number that is given to you." The brown tabby tom that hauled Dapplecloud mewed, then started pointing his claws at us in turn. Silver she-cat, one. Pretty white she-cat, two. Green-eyes kitty, three. Strategy-plotting she-cat, four. Me, five. Dapplecloud, six. Tortoiseshell, seven. Dawntail, eight. Then he turned to the toms. "ThunderClan, your pair of she-cats is one and four. ShadowClan, you get seven and two. WindClan, six and three. Last but not least, RiverClan, you get six and eight." The shy blue-grey tom looked back and forth between me and Dawntail. "Now, head to your nests and get some sleep. Tomorrow is when the games begin." He jeered, directing she-cats and toms to two separate caves with his paw. Oh no.

 **Hoped you guys liked that little bit of Hazelshade's background, that foreshadowing for later, and the weirdness of those she-cats' personalities. Here, I'll give you a hint. Every she-cat's personality except for Dapplecloud and Hazelshade is based off an MLP. Whoever guesses which cat is based off of which MLP Mane Six gets...uh...some virtual cookies or a Hazelshade plushie. I've already written one of the close-to-last-chapters, even before I've developed the plot line. See you next chapter!**


	4. The First Battle: Snowstream

**The answers were...**

 **Dawntail= Rainbow Dash**

 **Snowstream/fluffy white one= Rarity**

 **Silverheart/ shy silver one= Fluttershy**

 **Bouncefern/ excited tortoiseshell= Pinkie Pie**

 **Pinemoon/ muddy one with forest green eyes= Applejack**

 **Moonfeather/ studious white and grey one= Twilight Sparkle**

 **Thanks for playing. Today's prize, a Hazelshade plushie, goes to Song of the Howling Wolves, who guessed the most right! Tune in for another game soon!**

 **Snowstream's POV**

I rose from my nest and stretched, yawning as warm sunlight flooded through my eyelids. I padded over to the fresh kill pile and started scarfing down a large rabbit. Today, grace and elegance wasn't going to save me. Only brute strength and strategy would help me win this. But I didn't want to kill.

These claws were made for hunting and fishing, not slaying she-cats from other Clans. No, I wasn't going to do this. I was going to protest against this cruelty, even if I died. I'm sure Bouncefern would join me, since she was a friend from Gatherings. A friend. I wouldn't kill a friend. Only a heartless monster would kill their friend.

I finished eating and rose to look at the walls around me. We were trapped, kept inside the arena with tree-high walls of rock, clay, and sculpted mud. In many moons, two thirds of the cats that entered would leave, but their lives would never be the same again.

The sun began to rise, flinging the sky into a scarlet and pink sunrise that reflected off of the few, fluffy clouds in the sky. It reminded me of these events, actually. Scarlet, for the blood spilled. Pink, for the beauty of kits. And the clouds reflecting the light, symbolizing us looking upon our past lives before this. What surprised me was that there was more pink in the sunrise than red. More beauty and love than pain and death and blood? Didn't seem possible. Nevertheless, the Games were the Games. We would move on back to our Clans. Except for them.

Those who would be slain, whose bodies would be discarded among the earth without a proper burial, because they lacked what the Games took. Strength, strategy, and competitiveness. Those whose blood would be mindlessly spilled without a thought for a mate that their competitor didn't want. This wasn't right, and this surely wasn't the solution to our problems. But it was the way our four Clans had chosen to go. Maybe not a path I was willing to follow, but the path our lives and our Clans took. The path that tore us from our families and Clans to the arena, where there was only one thought: Kill to win.

Soon the other she-cats began to stir as the symbolic sunrise changed to a soft blue. The toms rose before most of the other she-cats woke up, and I took a look at the tom I had been assigned to. The ShadowClan tom, Lizardjaw was his name. His dark cream fur was tangled and knotted, with dirt crusted onto his chest and a long crimson scar running down his right side. His eyes were a deep forest green, like the color of an evergreen tree in a rainy spring. I supposed he was handsome, in a muscular, tough, sort of way, but if he wanted me as a mate, he better get cleaned up. Soon Bouncefern was at my side as we chatted about the events ahead of us.

"Oh! So that's the tom we're fighting for!" She mewed excitedly as I pointed him out. "Who do you think will come out alive for the other pairs?" she queried.

"Only we're battling today, but I have some ideas. I think Moonfeather will win over Silverheart, because she knows how to plan a good strategy. Dapplecloud and Pinemoon are tough to place, but I think Pinemoon will end up coming out on top. For Hazelshade and Dawntail..." I paused to think. "I actually don't know. I haven't met them in person, but I've heard both of them are pretty tough."

"Dawntail's wonderfully competitive." Bouncefern remarked.

"More like a wonderfully jerky piece of fox dung." I mumbled, quiet enough so that Bouncefern couldn't hear. I didn't want her to know that I didn't like someone from her Clan.

"What was that?" she purred innocently.

"Nothing, Bouncefern. Just talking to myself."

"No time for that, you gotta prep yourself to battle with me!" she purred in a friendly tone, pretending to swipe at my nose.

"Actually," I mewed, pausing for added effect. "I'm not going to battle you."

"What do you mean?" she asked, stopping her excited bouncing up and down.

"I'm going to protest." I continued. "I don't think it's right to kill one of my best friends from another Clan because I want to win this mindless puppet game. I'm not going to fight. I will sit there even if they kill me. Will you join me?" I asked, glancing in her direction. Her head fell down like it did when she had to think about something. Her eyes were darting back and forth and I could tell she was under some pressure. After all, her Clan valued winning the Games and trained their apprentices intensive fighting techniques to use. Finally she lifted her head up and looked at me will firm confidence.

"I will." she promised. "I don't think it's right either, even if I let down my Clan. I'll protest with you." Bouncefern opened her mouth to say more but then one of the guards came over to haul us to the fighting arena. It was a three-tree tall, 15 fox-length wide structure made out of woven brambles and reeds. As we were pushed inside, I noticed several branches jutting out of the tightly-woven walls. Lizardjaw was dragged to the entrance to watch us fight for him against his will.

"Go!" a tangled-furred, bulky grey tom yowled. I leaped up onto a branch and firmly planted my paws on the smooth wood.

"No."

"What did you say?" The guard asked furiously.

"I said no. Me and my friend Bouncefern are not going to be forced to fight for a tom we don't even know in a puppet show to make the Clans happy. Is this what StarClan would have wanted?" Lizardjaw and Bouncefern couldn't help letting out a little gasp. Even though Bouncefern still believed in StarClan, most cats had discarded their old beliefs when the new warrior code was created. The grey-furred tom put his paws on my shoulders and roughly pinned me to the ground.

"I don't care mouse dung about your stupid 'traditional beliefs'!" he roared. "You are going to fight her or you are going to die." He spat menacingly, unsheathing the claws on his left paw dangerously close to my neck. The golden brown tabby who had brought Lizardjaw in tackled Bouncefern.

"Don't get any ideas, pretty." he snarled, his shining silver claws glinting far too close to my friend's throat.

"We will fight." she mewed in a firm voice. The guards released us and I stumbled to my feet.

"Bouncefern, what are you doing? We're friends!" I exclaimed.

"WindClan taught me to stay loyal to my Clan no matter what, even above close friends and StarClan." She growled, her throat rumbling as she advanced below me. The she-cat who I thought was a sweet friend was now a dangerous enemy.

"If that's the way you want to play, then fine!" I yowled, leaping onto her back. Clawfuls of black and ginger fur were torn out of her skin as I managed to cut her before she flung me off. I flew into the air and hit the branch I had been perching on just a few seconds ago. My body became limp as I fell to the floor.

"Goodbye, friend." she sneered sarcastically as she pinned me down. She slowly extended her claws to my throat. Suddenly, blood gushed out of a slit across my throat. I slid in and out of consciousness as the scent of blood filled my nostrils and a slit was cut on my forehead too. Blood dripped into my eyes and made everything a foggy red blur.  
"Please let it be over soon, StarClan." I whispered, choking on the sticky crimson liquid that bubbled in my throat. Suddenly, everything went black. I was above my lifeless body. My well-groomed, snow-white fur was tangled and caked with sticky blood. It was splattered all over my face and chest and I almost cried at how terrible I had to die before I took one last look at the tom who could have been my mate. He looked pretty upset, and I assume he fancied that I won. Not today, in this universe.

I kept being pulled up, until I was surrounded by blackness again before I woke up in the shade of a beautiful oak. A sleek, white, long-furred she-cat with stunning blue eyes and a grey chest warmly smiled at me. "Mother?" She nodded.

 **Whew! That was a long one! This was the unexpected "Pinkie Pie turns dark" twist I just had to add. Who did you think was going to win? Please leave a review on what you thought of this chapter. I really appreciate every time someone gives me a review. It makes my heart soar, because I get to see through your eyes in my story. Constructive criticism is wanted, and I'm looking for someone to beta-read my chapters. Thank you, and goodbye guys!**


	5. The Second Battle: Pinemoon

**Thank you for all the reviews! I was really excited to see what you guys thought of last chapter. Those amazing comments fueled this chapter! I originally was going to have both refuse to fight and Bouncefern get killed by the guards and Snowstream forced to be Lizardjaw's mate, but I decided at the last minute to do the "Cupcakes" twist. But don't you worry, Bouncefern's gettin' what's coming to her. He he he...**

 **Pinemoon's POV**

Yesterday turned out a disaster. Bouncefern looked kinda creepy comin' out of the arena with her deceased enemy's and her own blood crusted onto her fur and claws. She was soaked in a giant stone basin filled with stream water that slowly drained out. Then she was congratulated by her Clanmates for winning and was shoved in a cave with Lizardjaw and blocked by a tightly woven gate of brambles and branches with the promise she wouldn't eat until she had "gotten to know" her mate. Yesterday, WindClan was in the spotlight.

But now it's my time to shine. To finally get some glory for my Clan which has been looked down on as the bad guys. I admit, I wasn't trained to do anything special for the Games, but I'm prepared. I'll list all my strengths, then the weaknesses I have to look out for. Strengths: I'm strong, quick thinking, and swift on my feet. I always have the muscle and brains to do the job. Weaknesses: Sometimes I'm a little impulsive, not to mention that with the muscle I am pretty bulky. I'm not the prettiest she-cat, but I'm good for gettin' a job done.

I just wanna get this over with, to be honest. I'm not looking forward to the event, but if I have to do it to survive, well, you gotta do what you gotta do. I'm not some crazy psychopath like Bouncefern, but who can blame her? She was raised in WindClan, which trains their she-cats to the maximum fighting ability to prepare for the games. I didn't get advanced training like her but I'm ready to fight for my Clan. My one last thought about Bouncefern: I don't think she deserves my brother.

I woke up, blinking harsh sunlight out of my eyes. I closed my eyes and shifted around on my nest of moss before I sprung up, realizing I wouldn't get much more sleep. It was barely after dawn, the sunrise fading from vivid, bright, colors to pale yellow and cool, breezy, blue. I took a piece of prey off of the small fresh-kill pile in the center of the camp and started to eat.

Even though the wood mouse's meat was rich and delicious, it tasted tough and bland with my anticipation for the games. Worries ran through my mind. _What if I get killed? What if my kits die? What if I can't fight as well as she can? What if-_ My brother settling next to me snapped me out of the frightened and anxious trance.

"Pinemoon, calm down," He murmured, nibbling on a small pigeon. The warm brush of his fur against my comforted me and reminded me of our happy days together in the nursery. "You'll do amazing, I know you will." he reassured. I took another small bite out of the mouse, which was starting to taste better as I was relieved of my worries. "I'll be waiting for you the moment you come out." _What if I don't come out?_ I thought, but shook my head to clear it.

"You will?" I asked hopefully.

"Yeah. Oh, wait. Yeah, right after you have all the blood cleaned off of you _and_ your fur is dry." I chuckled, then took a bigger bite of my prey. It was almost gone by now, and bones crunched in my mouth as I chewed the last few morsels of my food. Mine and my brother's bonding moment was cut off when I was dragged to my paws by one of the guards. Another guard pushed my brother away from me. "Good luck," he whispered, padding away. I was pushed by the burly guards towards the woven arena of brambles and reeds, among other things. I struggled out of the guards grip.

"Thank you, but I can walk myself!" I snarled. The first guard, a pale tabby, growled and moved a mouse-length away from my side. A pretty dappled she-cat was given the same treatment and was pushed into the arena, along with me a few seconds after. "I'm Pinemoon, from ShadowClan, nice to meet you. What's your name?" I whispered to the petrified she-cat who clearly was more for hunting for her Clan than fighting.

"D...d..d.d...Dapplecloud," she mumbled, obviously frightened at the four bulky toms in front of her. They all stood up on their hind legs and worked together to push a thorn-and-gorse mat in front of the entrance to make sure we wouldn't get out until one had killed the other. The toms were now on the top of the structure, peering through a Twoleg material and waiting for us to start fighting. I turned to the she-cat to calm her before we battled but she had already jumped onto one of the perches locked into the side of the arena. I wondered how cats had ever built this thing, and how long it took.

Dapplecloud was steadily gaining confidence as she jumped off the perch. I dodged out of the way before she could latch onto my back, and she landed a few mouse-lengths away from where I was now on four feet. She dashed at me, then changed directions when I dodged. Clinging onto my hind leg with her teeth, I growled in pain. I flung her off my leg into a boulder. Her right hind leg was twisted at an awkward angle as she got up but she kept fighting. I finally managed to strike a blow, slashing deep cut down Dapplecloud's left shoulder. She dizzily clawed at me in a daze of pain. Dapplecloud soon regained her balance and pinned me down, but I raked my claws down her underbelly before using my hind legs to fling her in the air. I took deep breaths to regain my strength and slowly pushed myself up with wobbly legs. Dapplecloud was on the other side of the arena, and before I knew, she was charging at me. My instincts kicked in and my claws sunk deep into her neck, delivering the killing blow.

Dapplecloud crumbled to the ground, blood pouring out of her neck into a puddle. The guards took off the makeshift gate and dragged her body away to be buried, then started filling the giant stone basin up with water. I sheathed my claws and padded out of the arena, victorious. As I climbed over the walls of the stone basin and into the cool water, I was submerged in my thoughts of victory. Now ShadowClan had some glory, some pride, some satisfaction that our warriors had done well. I had won. The blood was washed off of me, and I padded to the post-battle medicine cat den. There a black she-cat with green eyes was preparing herb poultices.

Without a word, she smeared a mixture of chewed-up marigold and nettle leaves onto my wounds. Then she applied cobwebs and sent me out to the she-cats' den. Today had been great. I had finally proved ShadowClan's worth.

 **Thanks for reading! Hope you guys liked this chapter, sorry it took a while to update. School. :( I try to write as much as I can every day on this story especially. Please, review. I'm not begging for you guys to review because I want popularity. I want true, honest, opinions of the story. Tell me who you thought would win! Bye guys! See you next time I update!**


	6. The Third Battle: Silverheart

**Keep reviewing, guys! The actual games are coming to an end in the next chapter, I think, but there'll be plenty drama, hatred, and adorable fluff after the she-cats are done killing each other. Bye bye for now!**

 ** _Silverheart's POV_**

I tend to shy away from cats and stay out of the light, so was I surprised to have been picked for the Mate Games. Killing's not really my thing. My leader tells me I'm a really good hunter, but I don't enjoy killing just to kill. I kill to feed my Clan. This started out as a shock, but it's turning into a total nightmare. Four cats entered that arena. Two cats came out of it, with blood crusted onto their fur. I knew I was weak. I knew I wasn't going to come out. But I could never have imagined this.

 **Dun dun dun! Sorry, continue with the story.**

I woke to the soft light of the early dawn streaming into the she-cats' den. I slowly lifted myself to my feet, hunger gnawing at my stomach like an angry rat. The moss I had slept in last night was twisted and curled in on itself, and I looked back to see all but two nests filled (that includes Silverheart's). I was guessing that the she-cat from ThunderClan named Hazelshade was up. She and Dawntail battled tomorrow, and I imagined that she couldn't sleep.

As I padded out of the she-cats' den, I found that I was right. Hazelshade had been the one who was awake. She was nibbling on a pigeon, but it didn't look like she had much appetite. I grabbed a shrew off of the fresh-kill pile and sat down with it. I decided I would make small talk, see if she could be the one friend I had before I died.

"H-h-h-how a-a-re you doing?" I slowly mumbled through mouthfuls of juicy prey. She turned around abruptly, looking as if she had been surprised that anyone was awake at this time of morning.

"Fine, thank you." The night black she-cat nodded curtly, hazel eyes filled to the brim with something I guessed was confusion or nervousness. She turned back to her prey and began to eat again, tearing small bites of the wood pigeon's flesh and its grey and brown feathers. She probably didn't want anything of me, but I made a daring move: speaking to her again. I drew in a small breath of the crisp dawn air, ready to speak confidently.

"What do you think of the Mate Games?" I asked, trying to strike an interesting topic to spice up the conversation. I knew I had immediately said the wrong thing when she climbed to her feet as if the prey she had been eating was filled with the white bodies of squirming maggots. Malice glinted in her eyes.

"What do I think about the Mate Games?" She started. "What do _I_ think about the Mate Games? Well, let's see. The 'games' tore my father apart from his true love, who found someone else while he was gone. They forced my father to mate with a she-cat he had only known for a couple moons at most, and forced me and my brother apart. I think they are foul and should be destroyed. I wish I could go back to the times when there _were_ no Mate Games." Her chest heaved up and down with effort, and she spoke as if her voice was the wind. Slow and gentle sometimes, but then harsh at fierce at others. Suddenly, shyness crept over me again, and I could only force out a few more words.

"I dislike them too," I replied timidly.

"Dislike?" she laughed, though her chuckle was full of sarcasm. "Oh, I don't dislike the Mate Games. I _hate_ them. I _despise_ them. I _loathe I_ them for what the so called 'games' did to my father and my family." I figured that it wouldn't help this fiery she-cat's mood to continue speaking, so I finished my shrew and got up. Before me I could see a huge reed dome, specks of faded green, straw yellow, and mud brown interwoven to create the habitat of disaster. The sun rose higher in the sky, and I could see she-cats and toms alike pouring out of their dens. The time that I was dreading drew closer and closer.

Two guards stood at my shoulders, smirking and whispering to each other behind my back. I didn't have to hear them, but I knew what they were saying. I was going to meet my death in this very place. I felt like a toy to these cruel overseers, like a moss ball in a kit's paws. And it didn't matter if that kit lost the moss ball, because it could always be replaced with another.

I soon saw another she-cat flanked by guards, a white she-cat smudged with smoky grey. Her tail flicked in annoyance, and it showed me that she was very independent. She was beautiful and well-groomed, and I suddenly felt the urge to wash myself. My fur seemed dull, limp, and matted with tangles from tossing and turning. She noticed my staring at her, and turned her head over and began to look me over. I suddenly remembered her name: Moonfeather. She was the she-cat who had been studying her surroundings and her denmates a lot.

My death was getting closer to me. The guards pushed us into the dome. They pulled a woven covering of brambles and thorns over the entrance. Moonfeather climbed to a high perch and looked down at me, her blue eyes scanning me over, studying my thin limbs and small, skinny shoulders. My death was getting closer to me. Her fur fluffed up as he took a well-aimed leap at me. I was frozen to the ground, my mind filled with terror, all my senses screaming for me to run away. Finally, she crashed down onto me. The breath was knocked out of me as her claws sank into my weak shoulders. She darted in front of me and swept her paw under my legs, knocking me off balance. My death was getting closer to me. Moonfeather pinned me down, but took sheathed her claws.

"I'm sorry I have to kill you," she confessed. "But you'll be a lot better off in StarClan than stuck in the Mate Games. I will spare your life if you want me to." I shook my head. I realized her point. "Goodbye, Silverheart," the she-cat murmured. "I'll try to make this as quick as possible." I felt claws contact my throat. They ripped through my flesh, and my blood poured out onto the dusty ground.

"Thank you, Moonfeather," I whispered, before my spirit rose higher and I joined the ranks of StarClan.

 **:'( So sad! Poor Flutter-I mean, Silverheart. Please review, favorite and follow. Hope you liked this chapter, my faithful readers! The next chapter will be very, well, murderous... MWA HA HA! *coughs* Sorry, I couldn't help myself.**


	7. Murder: Dawntail

**I'm just going to start writing this chapter right after I just posted one! Yep, great idea, Sunny! Anyways I mentioned that this particular chapter would be a bit, well, murderous, so without further delay, let's get right into it!**

 _ **Dawntail's POV**_

I wish it had been that puny fool Silverheart who made it out alive. She would be easier to kill. But, nevertheless, I will never even have a chance of getting killed. I'll just pick off the weak one. She was always weak, befriending cats from other Clans, but I suppose she did prove herself by killing Snowstream. She'll meet the same fate. Pinemoon was mourning the loss of Silverheart. She's another weak one, one who can't survive on their own. I can't _believe_ I'm going to have to be her brother's mate. But you gotta do what you gotta do.

I admit, I had been a bit nervous after Moonfeather came out alive yesterday, seeing as me and- ah, what's-her-name, Hazel-something-or-other, are fighting tomorrow. But I won't have to get my paws dirty- that much. I always knew she would come in handy one day. Now, she's going to have to die for my plan to work, and I am ready for it. Of course, she doesn't really know, but why should she?

I finished eating a juicy thrush I had gotten from a hidden prey storage, dug by me, of course. The sun was setting, and the sky was flushed with vibrant red. Just like blood that wouldn't be spilled. The red faded away to pink and orange, and some of the she-cats were starting to head into our den to sleep. I faked a yawn, knowing I would have to pretend to sleep to fool the guard. Those guards- what fools!

As the sky darkened to black, every cat settled down into her nest. All the other cats were asleep, and I trod carefully across the den to Bouncefern's nest. I poked her in the side with a claw.

"Ow!" she exclaimed. I slapped my tail over her mouth.

"Shhh! You're gonna wake every cat from here to StarClan!"

"So what do you want?" she whispered. I padded out of the den and she followed me.

"I thought you might want to hunt near the river," I meowed. "I found a huge rabbit burrow near there."

"You did?" Her ears perked up and her eyes shone. Pffttt- how gullible.

"Yes," I mewed, careful to be very quiet. "If any guards are still awake, we're just going out hunting." It wasn't as hard as I had originally expected to get out of the main camp. My long fur masked my footsteps, and the shadowed forest helped hide Bouncefern. Finally, we reached the river. There was a rabbit burrow close to it, as I has promised the hyper fool, but the scent of rabbits was stale.

"Hey," Bouncefern remarked, tasting the air. "There aren't any rabbits here."

I feigned surprise. "Really? There were some here a minute ago. Hmmm..." I paused, pretending to think. "Maye we could try to lure some frogs out of the river." Bouncefern nodded, showing me that she accepted the idea. We dug up some worms form the muddy soils and placed them near the banks.

"Now what?" she asked, peering into the river.

"I guess we just wait," I murmured, standing at her shoulder. My nefarious plan was unfolding right in front of me, and no one would know what happened. "Oh!" I exclaimed. "I think I see one leaping out! Try leaning forward more to catch it, Bouncefern!"

"Okay." she complied, leaning closer to the smooth river. "I don't see any-" Her speech was cut off as I shoved her into the deep water. She tried to surface and take a breath, but I pushed her down into the river.

"Oh no you don't," I growled, keeping a firm hold on her flailing body. Bubbles rose to the surface as she gasped for breath, inhaling nothing but water. Suddenly, her body fell limp. I stared gleefully as I watched a mess of tortoiseshell fur heaving up and down on the strong current. The funniest part is, no one will think that I drowned her. They'll think she must have just fallen in.

It wasn't really her fault that I had to murder her. She just wasn't ever really the brightest. She was weak, foolish, and gullible, three traits I was very unlikely to find in Moonfeather or Pinemoon. Now I had no need to worry about fighting Hazelshade for that fish-breathed tom. She can have him!

I caught a thrush and a mouse on the way back, making sure I had enough time to dry off and so I wouldn't look suspicious for going out in the middle of the night for absolutely no reason. Both of them I dispatched with not a quick, easy, death, but a slow, painful one like I had given Bouncefern. The mouse's blood spilled over onto my claws until it was reduced to a bloody pulp. I shrugged, leaving it behind and taking the thrush with me.

I placed my kill on the fresh kill pile. Its bracken-colored feathers were stained with the scarlet liquid that covered my muzzle and paws. Quickly I swept my tongue over my jaws and washed my paws, making sure that no one saw as I slipped back into the she-cats' den. My plan had worked, and that was all that mattered. I would never be accused of being guilty. I easily fell into the rhythm of sleep, my sides billowing up and down.

In my dreams, I was faced with a familiar shadowy forest. I padded through, stopping when I saw the scarred face of a familiar black she-cat. Her reddish-amber eyes glittered with power and bloodlust.

"Ravenfang," I greeted her.

"Dawntail," she meowed flicking her tail in a polite welcoming gesture. "You were very successful."

"Oh yes," I mewed. "But I couldn't have done it if you hadn't guided me. I was a weak fool, willing to follow the Clans around like a kit following her mother."

"Yes, yes," the black she-cat remarked. "You were quite foolish, but I have trained you well. Now you must show them what they have done wrong, and you will be the one they follow."

I dipped my head to Ravenfang as the scents of dawn washed over me. "I will."

 **There we go! Here is your extra chapter for this week since I haven't updated in so long. Sorry, but I like making projects on Scratch. I promise I will divide my time between the two sites better now. Bye! See you in the next chapter!**


	8. Risks and Cunning: Hazelshade

**Hello! This is Sunny (again)! Just a little note before we dive into the first chapter of adorable fluff. If you like the story, help support it by leaving a review for every chapter. You don't have to review every chapter, but once every two chapters or every other chapter would be nice. Bye! :3**

 **Oh, wait, I forgot something.**

 **-DISCLAIMER-** I do **not** own any of the Warriors' series'. The Erins do. Which is heartbreaking, but true. I own nothing but my OCs and original Clans (which in this case there are none).

 **My first random blurt-out when I _finally_ go to work on this chapter: "How many people are alive?" XD**

 **Now, finally onto the chapter that you patient readers have been waiting for so long. I love you guys! Shout-out of the day goes to Crazy Fennec Fox, who has reviewed the most of any person on my story. Thanks, Fox! And no, PepperWho, you can't murder Dawntail, she's important to the plot. But I promise that karma'll come back to bite her in the butt.**

* * *

 **Hazelshade's POV**

This is crazy. I don't have to battle Dawntail. I don't have to risk dying. I don't have to suffer all that pain of battling. And yet, I'm still being forced into love. I have about a billion problems with this situation.

Problem Number One. I don't know this tom. He could be insane and murderous **(*cough*Dawntail*cough* What? I didn't say anything? Now go back to the story!)**. He could be totally weird or mouse-brained or clueless or weak or obsessive or impulsive or about a million other things that I can't list.

Problem Number Two. He's from RiverClan. RiverClan and ThunderClan are always at each other's throats now. They hate each other with every last breath.

Problem Number Three. Foxspots is going to be my mate. I'm going to have two litters of kits with him, and we're going to name our first daughter Maplekit. I am totally not going to have kits with this RiverClan fish-breath.

And there's a ton more problems that I have with him that I could list, such as, he's not my type, he looks too scrawny, he smells like he eats WAY too much fish... But that's not my point, to bring out all of his negative traits, because he's probably a good cat. My point is: I'm not for him. He's not for me. End of story.

But the thing is...This all seems so suspicious. I mean, Bouncefern disappearing in the middle of the night and never coming back? Everyone else notices it too. Now no one knows who to trust, because Bouncefern's death couldn't have been an accident. As much as I'd like to not think it, she's a clever, cunning, she-cat. She wouldn't be mouse-brained enough to accidentally kill herself.

So it had to be someone else- someone cunning, someone who knew they could get away with murder, someone who's good at making up lies and persuading other cats **(*cough*Dawntail*cough*)**. And I'm looking, and not many of the cats size up to my thoughts. I mean, Pinemoon's probably one of the smartest of the remaining she-cats, but what would she get out of killing Bouncefern? ShadowClan and WindClan aren't fighting with each other right now. And Moonfeather is kind, she wouldn't be cruel enough to kill another cat. I heard what she told us about Silverheart. She didn't have a choice. I understand, because in this world, it's kill or be killed **(Aaannnnd deliberate Undertale reference. Continue reading.)**.

So that leaves only Dawntail. And I know it was her. **(Great! You finally figured it out!)** Because she's the only cat who be willing to spill the blood of a fellow Clanmate to save herself from the risk of dying. And that means that she's scared of me. But she's the one with all the training, and she's the one who could practically kill with a single paw swipe if she wanted to.

But now Dawntail's stuck with Lizardjaw. I don't think she likes him that much, to be honest. But if she's who I think she is, then she has to do whatever she has to do. The guards didn't give us a choice. Now today is Healing Day. All of the cats get their wounds patched up and get to rest and clean themselves and have time to spend with their new mates if they want.

But I'm stay away from Rippleclaw as much as possible. Just in case I do like him, I don't want to get attached to him. Because despite what the guards say, Rippleclaw will NEVER be my mate. I belong with Foxspots, and nobody else.

Oh. My turn to see the medicine cat. I get up, my limbs stiff. It's about sunhigh, I've been sleeping for so long. The shadowy cat examines me with her sharp green eyes before nudging me with a paw right back to my den. I didn't fight, so I guess I don't need any treatment. I think instead of being a lazy furball I'm going to take a walk through the woods to keep myself refreshed. The guards are a lot more lax on Healing Day, because some cats are supposed to go soak in cool water to help their sprained paw, and other cats are sent to gather herbs that the medicine cat needs.

The sunlight warms grass under my paws, and I take in a deep breath of warm air. I've missed having time to take walks or runs in the forest. I know a good river to bask by that's really close to the dome. I won't be gone for long. My paws skim the smooth dirt ground and finally I stop as I see a river bank full of tall, light grey rocks. I settle myself onto the lowest rock and stare into the river. Floating along, instead of branches or small rocks, is a sodden mess of tortoiseshell fur. Bouncefern!

My eyes widen in alarm. My shriek disrupts the beautiful soundtrack of birds chirping and leaves rustling in the wind. "Bouncefern's body! Get here, quick!"

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 **And, I'm gonna be mean and end the chapter with a cliffhanger. You're welcome! Also, guys, if you like what I'm writing, be sure to leave a reviews. I looked at my stats, and I compare them to reviews. Are you ready for this? For every 113.75 people that read a part of my story, only 1 person reviews. Please leave a review! I don't care if it's a two or three word review, like "Good work" or "I like it" or "nice job", all of those reviews count in my eyes. When I get a review from you guys, it helps me improve my writing and makes me feel good! And guys, if you want the next chapter to come out earlier, then write more reviews, please. Reviews give me a boost and make me want to keep writing. Thanks for reading my ridiculously long author's note. Bye guys! See you next chapter!**


	9. A Failed Task: Dawntail

**You guys have been waiting so patiently, and I last left off with a cliffhanger. I am finally out of school so I will update so much more often. I also created a new picture for the story. Do you guys like it? Tell me, please. Oh, and I just checked, and The Mate Games has had over 2,000 views! That's crazy! Now, onto the new chapter!**

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 **Dawntail's POV**

I was woken from my afternoon nap, which I took while the others were being treated, by a loud screech. "Bouncefern's body! Come here, quick!" What?! NO! They weren't supposed to find Bouncefern's body! I thought I had handled that! I immediately rose up and dashed toward the voice. It screeched again. "Bouncefern is dead! Her body! Come, quick!" I raced through parts of the wood that I didn't know, getting my fur tangled in thick clumps on thorny bushes. I stumbled over large mounds of dirt and cut my pads on sharp rocks. Finally, in horrible shape, I got to the noise. Oh no.

She found it. Most of the others would have been easy to kill so that no one would ever have evidence of her murder. But her? Hazelheart, or Hazelshadow, or something like that. Her? She was the most determined of them all to get out of this place. She would be the hardest to kill. But I had to. No one should be able to find any evidence. And she's not stupid, so I can't drown her like I did Bouncefern. I'll have to win against her paw-to-paw. It's like we never even missed our battle. It was just delayed, delayed until I had the right motive, the right reason to kill her.

So putting on an act of being terribly struck with grief, I padded up to Hazelface, who had heaved Bouncefern's body onto the riverbank. I feigned sadness as I spoke. "I heard you yelling about Bouncefern's body, so I ran over here. I'm so terribly sad, she was such a good friend of mine." Hazelflower only just glared at me, her eyes filled with hostility. "What do you want?" I asked. "I'm just grieving a friend's death. What's so wrong with that?" Hazelmouse padded up to me, slowly, ominously, with the same glare of hostility pasted to her face.

"What's wrong with that," she began to speak. "is that I think you killed her."

How could Hazelclaw have found out?! I had hidden all evidence, and even though she had found Bouncefern's body, it wouldn't help. I didn't bite her or claw her, I drowned her! So how could Hazelwing have found out? "What?" I feigned surprise, trying not to panic. "Me? Why would I kill my best friend? Why would I kill my Clanmate?"

She shrugged. "I don't know your motives, but I have significant evidence. I saw you leaving camp with Bouncefern last night, saying you were going to go hunting by the river."

"How did you hear that?" I said quickly.

"Anyone could have heard that, you were making as much noise as a blind badger. But this next scrap of evidence you can't ignore. It gives me believable proof." She pulled a damp clump of yellow-gold fur out from between two of Bouncefern's claws and held it almost gloatingly in her mouth.

The next thing I knew, I was charging at Hazelbrain. She turned around and swept her hind leg into my front legs, making them buckle and making me lose my balance. I noticed that suddenly that forest got quiet. There was almost no noise, no birdsong, no leafy ruffles, just the steady movement of the river. I got back up, facing her. My muzzle wrinkled as I snarled at her. Our tails lashed in almost the same rhythm, and she sprung at me. I ducked under her and slashed my claws across her underbelly, but the next thing I knew she had jumped up and twisted around, leaving me on the ground and exposed.

She quickly managed to claw my forehead before she ran a few mouse-lengths back to avoid being clawed. She circled around me, and as I got up, blood dripped into my eyes. All I could see was crimson, and as I blindly clawed and thrashed, she took the chance to claw several deep marks on my underbelly, a thin, warning, wound on my neck, and finally, a frontal paw blow that left me out cold.

When I woke up, it was about late sunhigh. There was no blood anywhere on the ground, but my eyes still had traces of blood from our battle. I climbed into the shallow end of the river, absorbing the warmth. I made sure to check in between my claws, and sure enough, I found a few clumps of black fur stained with blood. I tossed them into the river and they floated downstream. Then I remembered. I climbed out of the river and looked around. Bouncefern's body was nowhere to be seen.

Which means she must have taken it with her! But she has so little proof, they couldn't believe her. Could they? I hope they don't ever find out. They must just think that Bouncefern drowned right, from her wet fur? And she was never the sharpest claw on the paw, but will they really believe that she was that dumb? After washing, I slept, hoping to get guidance from Ravenfang.

I snapped my eyes open to be surrounded by a dreary, shadowy, forest. Ravenfang slipped out from behind a tree with rough gray bark. She looked displeased. And with Ravenfang, that was never a good thing. "Dawntail." Her voice was hollow and cold. I shuddered. I knew that this couldn't be good. "You have failed your task. Instead of successfully eliminating and disposing of a weakling, you have let evidence be found, and it could be used against you. Killers are supposed to be cunning, and they _clean up their messes_. Instead, you just left the evidence in plain sight instead of making it look like she was mauled by a fox or fell off of a high place.

"I-I'm sorry..." I ducked my head in embarassment.

"Sorry doesn't fix any of this." Ravenfang growled harshly. "Now, look me in the eye instead of hanging your head like a kit. There, that's better. Now, you have failed your first task. That's claw mark number three." She scratched a mark on a withered tree stump with two claw marks already on it. "And you know what happens when we get to claw mark number four, right, Dawntail." I nodded my head, too scared to do anything else. "Now, your new task is to get rid of Hazelshade. You must make it convincing."

"B-but, Ravenfang, I-"

Ravenfang slashed a deep cut down my side. "No buts! You take the task or get your last claw mark and are forever remembered as a mouseheart." Her words scathed me. I had been known to back out of my tasked. I will not be remembered as a mouseheart. I will complete my task or die trying.

"Okay, I'll do it." I said. Now that I had mustered up the courage to say I had accepted, there was no way to back down.

Ravenfang nodded. "Good. Now, you, go along. I have to take care of Redleaf. That mouse-brain has failed his fourth task." Ravenfang slowly padded into the distance, and I crouched behind a dead bush. I was too scared for Redleaf to snap myself out of the Dark Forest. He had been a bit dim-witted, that was true, but he always managed to lighten the mood and he was was of the first cats I met in the Dark Forest. "You mouse-brain! You can't even complete a simple task! You could never rise to greatness with your foolishness!" I heard Redleaf wailing and I could imagine Ravenfang's great, pointed, teeth sinking into his neck. Then, all of the noise died away. _That could have been me_ , I reminded myself. _And it's going to be me if I don't fulfill my task._

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 **Okay guys, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please remember to review if you liked the chapter, tell me how you like the new picture, favorite to keep track of the story, or follow to keep up with it and get an alert with every new chapter. Hope you guys liked the first chapter I wrote with my summer freedom, and I will see you guys next chapter. Bye!**


	10. Burials and Pairings: Moonfeather

**Wow. A lot of crazy stuff happened in the previous chapter. In this chapter, things finally start to cool down and get more about the pairings than the conflict. Also, I'm steering away from the two main characters, Hazelshade and Dawntail and giving a fresh POV. I hope you enjoy!**

 **One last note, I know I wasn't very clear about who was fighting for who, so here's the list:**

Hazelshade and Dawntail for Rippleclaw

Pinemoon and Dapplecloud for Shrewfur

Moonfeather and Silverheart for Branchtail

Bouncefern and Snowstream for Lizardjaw

* * *

 **Moonfeather's POV**

Yesterday was just me resting a lot and eating to help my wounds heal. But Dawntail and Hazelshade, the only two cats who didn't fight, were out of camp pretty much all day. I remember that Hazelshade went on a walk early in the morning. A few minutes after she had left, I heard her shrieking, "Bouncefern's body! Get here, quick!" I would have gotten up, but my right back leg was really sore from the battle. Dawntail, though, suddenly perked up her ears and in her eyes was a look of plain terror. Trying to act casual, she walked out of camp. Fortunately for her, no one was guarding the entrance at the moment. However, when she was out of sight, she made an awful lot of noise, telling me about how fast she was moving and in what direction. After she got far enough away, I couldn't really hear anything. I decided to take a nap soon after, and a bit after I woke up, Hazelshade came back. By the time that dusk was starting to fall, Dawntail came back into camp, too. After they came back from camp, both of them were covered in scratches, but there was no dried blood or tufts of fur in between their claws. They must've had a fight back there.

Hazelshade also dragged Bouncefern's body just a tiny way outside of camp and buried it. Then she took Snowstream's body from where it was in the arena, since they haven't cleaned up the bodies yet, and she buried her body too. These two burials took until about moonrise, and even when everyone else went to sleep, Hazelshade didn't stop burying the bodies. I was somehow exhausted from sleeping all day, and I wanted to watch to see if she finished burying all of the bodies or not, but I eventually fell asleep nonetheless.

This morning, when I woke up, I decided to walk a little ways out of camp to see Hazelshade's work. I couldn't believe my eyes! There was evidence of four, large, neatly-dug pits in which the bodies had been buried and then covered with dirt. I was so amazed by Hazelshade's determination that something in my brain decided that I would go ask her how she managed it. If she was awake, of course.

She was, just sitting quietly away from the others while eating a pigeon. I slowly approached her. Suddenly, I didn't know whether I should talk to her or not. She looked like she was thinking about something important, and I didn't want to interrupt that. Right as I was about to speak, she turned her head around.

"Yes?" I didn't know that she was so quick to understand others! She had somehow knew that I wanted to talk to her about something, even when I hadn't spoken a single word to her yet.

"Well, Hazelshade, there was something I wanted to talk to you about."

"Uh huh. So what was it?"

"Well, I saw that you buried all of those bodies, and I wanted to ask you why you were so determined to do it." Hazelshade drew in a breath, preparing to speak.

"I was disgusted that fellow cats of the Clans were murdered without thought and I decided to take the time to bury and honor them." Suddenly, I felt guilty. I already felt bad enough having to kill Silverheart. But I didn't murder her without thought! She agreed, she wanted to join StarClan.

"Hey," I replied to Hazelshade. "I didn't kill Silverheart without a thought. I didn't want to kill her, but she didn't want to live on to the raising of the kits. I understood her. So I spared her from the horror." Hazelshade looked at me with a strange emotion in her eyes, I couldn't tell. She turned her head away.

"You know, you're not as bad as the others." And then she walked away. How peculiar! She looks at me all weird, says a few words, and walks away! How weird. But I somehow feel like I know her somewhat better now. Just from that tiny conversation. How peculiar.

Just when I was finishing my morning meal, a bit after talking with Hazelshade, the lead guard called out for everyone to gather. I finished the scraps of my meal and padded quickly towards the gathering area. All cats were there, but the toms and she-cats were each clumped into a group. The lead guard noticed this.

"You pathetic idiots, you're going to be getting with your new mate in a few seconds, so you're going to have to learn to get closer to cats of a different gender. I know, so horrifying! Now group together!" The two groups reluctantly merged, and now all I could do was look awkwardly around at the toms. I couldn't remember who I had been fighting for in the first place. How embarassing!

"I will go in alphabetical order," stated a smaller, thinner, guard. "Dawntail of WindClan, your pair is Lizardjaw of ShadowClan." Dawntail and Lizardjaw walked up to the base of the huge boulder that the guards were standing on. Lizardjaw curtly nodded in acknowledgement to Dawntail, and the pair went over to an area that the skinny guard was pointing to with his tail. "Hazelshade of ThunderClan, your pair is Rippleclaw of RiverClan." Hazelshade walked up to the base of the boulder, as did Rippleclaw, but instead of walking to the designated spot with him, she hissed at him and walked to the spot alone. "Moonfeather of ShadowClan, your pair is Branchtail of ThuderClan." My heart pounding, I walked up to the base of the boulder where I met with a young brown tom with a crooked tail. I shyly grinned at him and we walked to our spot. "Pinemoon of ShadowClan, your pair is Shrewfur of WindClan." The two met up and walked to their spot, next to Branchtail and I.

"Now that you are with your pairs, cats of the Clans," a black-and-white cat began. "you shall go to the partner dens. You may choose whichever den you like, as long as no one has already claimed it. Now, go!" The line of pairs scattered and I began looking for a suitable den. After Branchtail and I disapproving of quite a few dens, he found a den under the roots of a very large tree, which had plenty of room.

I saw Hazelshade swiftly climbing up a cliff, settling in a high cave den without asking for her pair's approval. I guess she just doesn't really like him. Dawntail and Lizardjaw were on a large cliff surrounded by scraggly bushes. Pinemoon and her pair, Shrewfur, settled on a small hollow close to our den. I decided to go over to visit Pinemoon and talk to her about her pair. I told her that my pair seemed okay, and she replied with the same, also adding that he seemed very timid. But during our conversation, I couldn't help but notice that her "timid" pair kept glancing in my direction.

* * *

 **Okay guys, that's going to be the end of this chapter, I'm sorry it took so long to update. I've been on a lot of camping trips. I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and I felt like just giving this little reveal, so here I go. There will be a somewhat unexpected love triangle, but I won't say any more. Feel free to speculate on who the love triangle will involve! Thank you guys for continuing to read this, I've really been enjoying writing it. I'm sorry about all of the super-long author's notes at the end, but I wanted you guys to know how much I thank you guys for supporting me while I'm writing this fanfiction. Thanks guys, see you next chapter!**


	11. Unnatural: Pinemoon

**I am so sorry about my long inactivity, and I know that some of you were eagerly waiting for this chapter. Thank you guys for being so patient with me.**

* * *

 **Pinemoon's POV**

I was so exhausted yesterday that when I was done talking to Moonfeather, I just gathered some moss to lay on and slept. I couldn't help but notice how weird Moonfeather was acting when we were talking, sometimes just glancig behind me to look and something and then looking at me and pretending like she hadn't been doing anything. I wonder, was she...glancing back at my pair? No, Moonfeather wouldn't do that, she's too good of a friend. Besides, the rules about pairings of the Mate Games are clear: You can only interact with your pair and other cats of your gender when it's the second stage of the Mate Games. I can't really remember much about when I fell asleep, but when I know it was late sunhigh.

I woke up, probably not very long after moonrise, and I saw that Shrewfur had made a nest of moss, but it didn't retain much of his scent yet. I figured that he was just nervous and couldn't sleep, but I was still curious about where he had gone to. I followed his scent and faint pawprints to find him a ways away from our chosen den, at the river. He had his head dipped down towards the dark water to take a drink, and a few fireflies fluttered around near the river, glowing yellow and orange. He didn't notice me at first, and when I said "Hello" he was so startled that he fell face first into the river. Luckily, it wasn't very deep nor very fast, and once he turned around after climbing back onto the rocky bank of the river and saw that it was me, I started to laugh and he turned away his head in embarrassment. I immediately felt bad, because judging from his behavior around other cats during this event, it seemed he was very shy and insecure.

"I'm sorry," I said quickly.

"No, no, you don't have to apologize, I think it was very foolish of me to jump into the river when I heard my mate coming." I chuckled a bit, but felt my cheeks grow hot when he referred to me as his mate instead of his pair.

"Quite the ladies tom, aren't you?" I asked jokingly, trying to brush off my embarrassment.

"Not really," Shrewfur admitted, licking up the fur on his left leg.

"Oh, you must be cold!" I suddenly realized. "Let me help you with that." Feeling myself become even more embarrassed, I jumped over a large stone and began to help him warm up. When we were done, he stood still by the edge of the river and let the wind flow through his fur to dry it out. With his fur all fluffed-up like that, he kinda looked cute. I turned my head away to hide my feelings from him if he decided to turn around. He turned around when he saw me move my head.

"Something wrong?" he asked gently, padding up to me.

"Nothing's wrong," I said abruptly, turning away from him and heading back to the den.

"Wait!" He yowled desperately. "Was it something I said?" I coldly ignored him, dashing on. When I got to our den, I closed my eyes to think.

 _What is wrong with me?! I can't possibly do this! No! I'll escape or something! I can't live like this! I just can't! It's unnatural. I was never supposed to fall in love with Shrewfur! I had a feeling that Addertooth was going to ask me to be his mate... We were so close, and then they tore me away from him and took me to this wretched place. How can I have kits with a stranger? No._ I shook my head furiously. _I've made up my mind. I'm leaving tomorrow morning, no matter what. I_ sighed. _To flee from the Mate Games is to break the warrior code. I'll be killed if I'm spotted in Clan territory. I'll have to become a rogue._

I circled nervously in my nest before curling into a ball to try to sleep. I couldn't fall asleep, though, thoughts fluttering around all over in my brain like restless cicadas. _Is fleeing really the right choice to make? If I leave, they could blame Shrewfur, and...well, I don't want to think about that. I mean, Shrewfur's not the right tom for me, but I wouldn't want it to be my fault if he was killed._ I sighed once again. I had to make some choice. Leave the Mate Games to become a rogue and possibly leave Shrewfur to die? Or stay here and have kits with a complete stranger who I'll never see again in my entire life? I got up and padded over the dusty ground to the fresh kill pile where the guards were doling out evening meals.

All of the toms were given a sparrow to share. Looking around, I noticed that Shrewfur was missing from the group of toms. Each she-cat was given a fat piece of prey. _They're fattening us up for when we have kits!_ I realized disgustedly. Padding over to a small patch of dead, golden, grass with a juicy vole clutched tight in my jaws, I felt a chilly gust of air blow by. _I can't believe it's almost leaf-fall..._ I took a bite out of my vole. It was still warm, so I assumed that the guards had been out for a hunting patrol to refill the fresh kill pile before the meal.

Finally, Shrewfur padded into the group of toms, the guards glaring at him, their eyes filled to the brim with hostility. Rather than moving to the center to eat or socialize, he plopped down quite a bit away from them, yet still close to them. His eyes glinted with sadness, his fur still fluffed up from when I had shared tongues with him earlier. I felt really bad for him, but I decided it wasn't the time to apologize.

After eating, Branchtail and Moonfeather sat together purring, their tails intertwined. At least somebody liked their pair. Hazelshade was nowhere to be seen, and Rippleclaw was wandering around, confusedly looking for her. Dawntail was sitting with my brother, yet they weren't quite together. She warily eyed him with a look that said, "If you get any closer I will claw your eyes out."

Suddenly, my vision started to blur. The whole world was spinning, and I whimpered softly. Shrewfur started to pad over to me, clearly concerned. "Pinemoon? Pinemoon? Are you okay? What's going on?" His voice rung in my ears, and then everything turned black.

* * *

 **Bum bum bum! What happened to Pinemoon? Feel free to speculate below! On a different note, thank you for being patient with me during my long hiatus. See you guys next chapter!**


	12. Tragedy of the Stars: Shrewfur

**Shrewfur's POV**

"S-someone get the medicine cat!" I yowled desperately. My whole body was trembling with fear. I could feel my fur stand on end. _What was in that prey? Is Pinemoon okay?_ A dark blur sped out of the medicine cat den and the black she-cat pushed cats aside to move as quickly as possible to Pinemoon's side. She sniffed the piece of prey that Pinemoon had been eating.

"This prey was poisoned!" The medicine cat announced. She stuffed herbs down Pinemoon's throat and told everyone to move away. I stood back in shock. _How could this have happened? Who did this?_ I could hear Pinemoon throwing up violently as I turned away, and a wretched scent filled my nose. Pinemoon was taken to the medicine cat's den and the guards cleaned up and sent everyone to the dens for the rest of the day. As we left, I could hear the medicine cat talking to the main guard. "Do anything you have to to find out who did that. Queen's lives can not be put at stake."

When I went into my den, I curled up as small as possible, still shaking. I was scared. What was going to happen to my would-be mate? I slept fitfully, dreaming terrible nightmares. Pinemoon collapsed again, and blood rained down on her, sweeping me up in a flood. Dead kits floated on the surface of a crimson river, and my nose filled up with the scent of blood and vomit before I awoke, hitting my head on a large rock. I was drenched in cold sweat, and the sky above me was pitch black. It seemed that even the stars had stopped shining.

 _I wonder...would the world be like this forever if Pinemoon was dead? Dark and cold, without a single speck of light..._

In the morning, the guards hustled everyone together into a large group. They gave us each a piece of prey.

"You will be called one by one," droned the lead guard. "Everyone will go to and stay in their dens from now on until they are called. when we are done, you will be returned to their dens. Shrewfur of WindClan, you are first." All of the other cats dispersed and left for their dens. I was taken into a large cave with the lead guard and a boulder was pushed over the entrance.

 _What's going on? Does this have to do with Pinemoon?_

"We would like to know if you have any information about the poisoning of Pinemoon from ShadowClan. As you may recall, she is your mate-to-be." _Is? So she must be alive, then._ I felt slightly relieved.

"N-no." I mewed. I was sure the guard could scent my strong fear-scent. "She was upset the night before, but I didn't see her in the morning."

"And you have no suspicions as to who might have poisoned her?"

"N-no, sir."

"Quit the act." The guard growled. He shoved me against a wall and held me there. "I can tell that you're afraid. You obviously know something that you don't want to tell us."

"N-no! I swear! I've told you all that I know!"

"I'll make this ugly, rodent. Don't think I won't." I gulped.  
"I've told you all that I know," I repeated, trying to stay calm.

A growl of anger rose in his throat and he slashed my shoulder and dropped me to the ground.

"TELL ME NOW!" He roared.

"I don't know!" I wailed.

"YOU'RE A LIAR!" He slashed my sides and stomach. "LIKE ALL OTHER FILTHY WINDCLAN SCUM!" He was breathing heavily. Another guard burst in, pushing the lead guard aside.

"Now, now, Rush, it's alright. And you can go back to your den," he said to me dismissively. I had a feeling that that guard was going to need to calm down and wouldn't be interrogating cats anymore.

* * *

I sat in my den alone. I missed Pinemoon. I didn't care that she was from another clan anymore. She was the only one I had here. It had been two days since she had been poisoned. Everything was silent. Nobody came out of their dens anymore except for meals. I wondered when Pinemoon would be well enough to come back. I missed her. _I miss her. I miss her scent of mud and forest. I miss her beautiful green eyes looking at me with trust. I miss her laying next to me at night, breathing slowly. I miss feeling her heartbeat on my side while I sleep. I miss every part of her. I miss Pinemoon. She is my mate._ _I wonder what our kits will be like._

"Shrewfur? Are you awake?" I heard a soft voice.

"Pinemoon? Is that you?" I mewed softly.

"No." Bright blue eyes and white fur popped out of the darkness.

"Moonfeather? This is against the rules!"

"Do rules really matter when it comes to true love?" She brushed up against me and twined her tail with mine.

"Moonfeather, true love? This is so sudden!"

"My love," she brushed her tail across my chin. "Didn't you understand from the start? I saw you looking back at me on that day." While that was true, it wasn't what she thought.

"N-no!" I stuttered. "I-I was confused by you! Confused at w-why you were looking at me!"

"Love, don't deny it!"

"Moonfeather!" I yowled. "I don't love you!"

"What do you mean, love?" She tilted her head. "Do you love her more?" She snarled. "I will get rid of her so we can be happy together!"

"You're insane!" I backed up against the wall of the cave.

"You will love me!" Moonfeather growled, pushing me to the ground and splaying herself on top of me.

"Moonfeather?" Branchtail walked in. "YOU MATE-STEALER!" He yowled, lunging at me and Moonfeather.

"I can explain!" I said, jumping to my feet.

"Just leave my mate alone!" He snarled, padding out with a smirking Moonfeather at his side.


	13. A Confusing Surprise: Dawntail

**Dawntail's POV**

"Dawntail!" A loud hiss surrounded me and I flinched. "You have failed!"

"It's not my fault!" I growled as the black she-cat walked towards me, the huge, dead trees casting a shadow on her. "I intended for Hazelshade to eat it, not that stupid ShadowClan cat!"

"The dose of poison wasn't lethal! Even if the intended cat had ingested it she wouldn't have died!"

"Ravenfang." I sunk to the ground, a carpet of dead leaves and branches. "I'm sorry. I've failed you. Please just make my death quick."

"Get up, you fool!" I sprung to my feet. "I will spare you from my wrath for now. You have potential. Now, what I want you to do is assassinate her and her mate tomorrow. If you can do that, a claw mark will be wiped from your record."

"Yes, Ravenfang." I felt fearful. Could I really do this?

"Go, my apprentice. I have faith that you will not fail me."

* * *

I snuck out of my den the next night. Unluckily for me, Lizardjaw stirred.

"Where are you going so late?"

"Just...for a walk. I can't sleep."

"No, you're not," Lizardjaw snarled. "Quit lying to me! You're up to something, I can tell!"

"Lizardjaw, go back to sleep! You're being paranoid." Lizardjaw turned his back on me and mumbled something.

"Whatever," I murmured under my breath. _Come on! I have to do this! I can't end up like...like...like Redleaf._

After nimbly climbing down the cliff where my den was, I only had a little ways to walk before I could climb up to Hazelshade and her mate's den. The rocks were more difficult to climb up to than the ones for my den. I reached the top and cautiously stepped inside, and I almost burst into laughter. It looked as if Hazelshade had put herself against the opposite wall of the cave, but Rippleclaw had moved over and laid next to her once he knew that she was asleep.

With Hazelshade like this, it would be easy to kill her. I dropped the red berries that I had picked up on the way here and opened Hazelshade's mouth. I accidentally dropped the cluster of berries that I was going to put in her mouth and stepped on them when I stumbled backward to pick them up.

 _Well great! There goes my plan!_ Then I remembered something Ravenfang said. _"Killers clean up their messes!"_ And even though I had lost my opportunity for murder, I would make sure to clean up the mess I made so no one knew I was ever there.

* * *

In the morning, I ate my meal silently and went immediately back to my den. I ignored my mate for the rest of the day, trying to come up with another plan. I gave up. I would ask Ravenfang to help me figure out a plan tonight. Surely she would give me more time.

I walked only a few paces in the gloomy forest that night before I was met by a familiar red-eyed face.

"I assume you need more time?"

"Yes, Ravenfang, and I require your help. I can't think of a plan."

"You could use a fox to kill them," Ravenfang replied. "Lead it to their den with a trail of cat blood and it will attack them."

"And whose blood do you presume I use?" I already knew the answer, but I still had a glimmer of hope that it wouldn't be what I expected.

"Your own, of course. You must take any action necessary to complete your task." Questions ate at me, but the most dreaded one lingered permanently. _What will happen if I fail?_

* * *

I was slow getting to morning meals the next day, and I ate much quicker than usual. I was sick right before sunhigh meals, and I was taken to the medicine den.

"So, have you eaten anything bad lately?" The she-cat asked, her back turned on me as she prepared herb bundles for who-knows-what.

"Um, I don't think so," I replied. "I didn't taste or smell anything weird when I was eating my thrush this morning."

She did a quick look-over of me and questioned me about my eating habits for the past couple days, her dark, plumy tail whisking for the entire examination. Finally, she stopped and sat looking at me with a grin.

"What are you smiling about?" I said stubbornly.

Her green eyes locked on my amber ones in a kind stare and she opened her mouth to speak.

"Dawntail, congratulations. You're expecting kits!"

And then my entire world stopped. Kits? This early? The other she-cats might think terrible things of me or my mate. Who was the kits' father, was the question. _But you already know the answer to that_ , a little nagging voice in the back of my mind said. Surely Lizardjaw would be suspicious. If there was one thing I knew about these kits, it was that Lizardjaw sure as heck wasn't their father. THe kindly medicine cat's remark cut into my thoughts.

"Your mate Lizardjaw is going to be so happy for this news! Aren't you, dear?"

"Er, yeah," I said, putting on a fake grin. "Just a little overwhelmed, that's all."

* * *

"Sorry about being suspicious about you, Dawntail," Lizardjaw mewed affectionately, licking my ear as we were snuggled together getting ready to sleep in the new spacious cave den I had been moved into.

"It's alright, sweetheart," I purred back, gagging on my words. I laid my head against his side and closed my eyes.

* * *

"So, kits? This will not affect your task, I presume?" Ravenfang's harsh voice rang through the clearing.

"No, it won't. You have my word," I promised. But inside, I really wondered if I could keep that promise. Could I really risk the lives of innocent kits for a mission for blood?


	14. Kits: All Queens

**(New!) -Stats-**

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 **Thanks for all of the support, guys!**

* * *

 **Pinemoon's POV**

"Congratulations, Pinemoon, you have given birth two three healthy kittens, two she-cats and a tom!" The medicine cat walked out of the nursery and ushered Shrewfur in.

The smallest of the litter, a she-cat, was mottled brown. The other she-cat was the largest of the litter and was a dark cream. A black tom with cream paws completed my litter, all of which were suckling and making small squeaking noises.

Shrewfur looked at me with pure love in his eyes.

"Our kits are beautiful," he purred.

"I know," I replied. "But for now, I think I need to rest. Maybe you can think of names while I sleep." Shrewfur nodded to me and walked out of the nursery, presumably to go back to our cave. I looked down on my kits, which were now sleeping peacefully, laying against my stomach. _I can't believe that I could ever have kits with another tom besides Adderfang. But...this feels natural. It doesn't feel like we were forced into this. It feels like we were just falling in love._

I closed my eyes and let the warm blackness envelope me in peaceful sleep.

* * *

 **Dawntail's POV**

"Jaykit, get over here!" I growled grumpily, directing it at a black tom-kit with blue eyes that was the largest kit in my litter. I slowly drew my tongue over a stray tuft of fur on the head of one of my she-kits, Ivykit, who was cream with red tabby patches and dark brown eyes. Sunkit, a russet tom with my hazel eyes, and Heatherkit, a cream tabby with the same hazel eyes, were playing mossball. Nightkit, a black she-kit with green eyes, and Foxkit, a russet she-kit with black paws, were sleeping peacefully next to me.

Lizardjaw was snoozing in the sun outside of our nursery, which was made mostly of mossy rock walls, with prickly brambles and thin vines.

"Lizardjaw!" I snapped. "Will you wake up and help me with the kits?"

"Oh, sorry," he mumbled sleepily. "It's just that I haven't got much sleep since the kits were born." I sighed.

"I know the feeling," I replied. Lizardjaw fetched Jaykit and plopped him next to Sunkit, and he joined the game of mossball that his brother was playing.

"I love you, mama!" squeaked Ivykit, staring up at me with a grin. _That grin..._ I thought. _That's his grin. She's inherited her father's smile._

 ** _Flashback_**

"Listen up! Your training partners are going to be assigned today!"

 _Teensy little time skip_

"So, you're my partner, huh?" He smiled. That same smile that my kit had smiled. "What's your name?"

"Um, Dawnpaw," I muttered nervously.

"Dawnpaw? Pretty name, by the way. Dawnpaw, I have a feeling we're going to make a great team!" He smiled again.

 _ **Flashback End**_

"Dawntail?" Lizardjaw's voice jolted me out of my memories. "It's getting time for Jaykit to take his nap."

"Oh yeah, it is," I mewed. Jaykit had been playing a little too rambunctiously with his siblings. "Jaykit!" I meowed. "Come over here! It's time for your nap!" Ivykit padded away from where she had been laying in between my front legs and bounded over to play with Sunkit and Heatherkit.

"Hmph. I'm not tired," Jaykit said grumpily, flopping down in front of me.

"Close your eyes," I mewed, gently licking his head for a few minutes until he fell asleep, his tiny chest rising and falling slowly with the rhythm of peaceful sleep.

 _As much as I dislike Lizardjaw, I love my kits so much. I'll do anything I have to to protect them,_ I promised myself. _Their father would want that._

* * *

 **Hazelshade's POV**

 _UGH! This is so stupid! My stupid belly is filled with the stupid kits of some stupid fishbreath RiverClan tom! How could this happen to me?_

"Are you alright?" The blue-grey tom that was Rippleclaw, my mate mewed.

"I'm fine!" I snapped. "Leave me alone!"

 _These were supposed to be Foxspot's kits, not HIS! None of this was ever supposed to happen!_

"Hazelshade," he mewed gently, "As much as I know that you hate me, I do care about you. Are you okay?"

"I'd be fine if you'd quit worrying about me!" I growled. I turned away from Rippleclaw and sighed. Maybe some sleep would clear my head.

* * *

 **Moonfeather's POV**

"Branchtail, it hasn't happened again. That one time was all my fault. But these," I dipped my head to my swollen belly. "are your kits. I promise."

"Whatever you say, Moonfeather," he meowed grumpily and sank to the floor of the nursery. There was a long stretch of silence.

"Maybe we can think of names for our kits while we're waiting for them to be born," I suggested.

"Sure," my mate replied. There was a small pause in the conversation.

"Well, for she-cats," I started. "I have Frostkit and Petalkit, and for toms I was thinking Spiderkit."

"Um, what about Mosskit for a she-cat and Boltkit or Oakkit for a tom?"

"Those are great names," I mewed enthusiastically.

"But I also think Spiderkit would work for a dark-colored she-cat," he added. I nodded. _This is turning out perfect! My mate doesn't hate me anymore! I honestly don't know what I thought was going to happen that night with Shrewfur. But I love the mate that I have right now._

"I love you, Branchtail," I purred, twining my tail with his.

"I love you too, Moonfeather."

* * *

 **And there we go, I know a shorter chapter than usual, but I wanted to give a dribble of what's happening with every queen.**

 **So, feel free to put in your suggestions for the names of Pinemoon's kits!**

 **And on a side note, who do you think Dawntail's mate is? I might reveal it sometime soon...**


End file.
